FROM THE ARCHIVE

Where did humans originate?

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DECEMBER 11, 2000

Competing theories on the origin of humans, or homo sapiens, has heated up due to recent advances in genome technology.

The widely accepted scenario is that humans developed in Africa and then spread out from there to populate the world. A recent report published in Nature suggested this was true. It compared 53 people of various ethnic and racial backgrounds and researchers say the genetic similarities among non-African populations show they left Africa at a a relatively recent time, around 50,000 years ago.

Others, however, believe man developed in several places at the same time.

Get the Story:
New Gene Study Supports 'Out of Africa' Theory (The Washington Post 12/11)

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Relevant Links:
Nature - www.nature.com/nature
The Human Genome Project at the Department of Energy: www.ornl.gov/hgmis
The National Human Genome Research Institute at the National Institute of Health: www.nhgri.nih.gov
Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues (ELSI) of the Human Genome Project: www.ornl.gov/hgmis/resource/elsi.html
Declaration of Indigenous Peoples of the Western Hemisphere Regarding the Human Genome Diversity Project: www.indians.org/welker/genome.htm